Why no love for ESEE 6S (partially serrated)?

Serrations can be very useful for fast , easy slicing flexible tough fibrous materials .

But longer , fully serrated blades , work much more efficiently , than short or partially serrated .

Serrations will continue to useably cut longer than PE (other factors being equal ) , but will start to tear rather than slice cleanly as they dull .

They are also a PITA to sharpen , some worse than others ( looking at you Cold Steel !) .

SE tend to be more fragile and easily damaged by chopping/ baton or other hard use .
 
DocJD said:
Serrations can be very useful for fast , easy slicing flexible tough fibrous materials .

But longer , fully serrated blades , work much more efficiently , than short or partially serrated .

Serrations will continue to useably cut longer than PE (other factors being equal ) , but will start to tear rather than slice cleanly as they dull .

They are also a PITA to sharpen , some worse than others ( looking at you Cold Steel !) .

SE tend to be more fragile and easily damaged by chopping/ baton or other hard use .
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If fully serrated ESEE6 existed - that's what I'd pick. To be fully honest.
 
Esee serrations are probably the most “bushcraft” friendly out there. I’ve had multiple serrated Esee’s - they sharpen on a stone because they are relatively flat, no points to dull and snag. I think you’ll be fine with the serrated Esee 6 - they do help tear through fibrous materials efficiently. You can make some interesting feather sticks as well. The main drawback might be losing some ability to detail carve

* Most importantly though - I’m not an expert on anything.

Get the 6, use it like you hate it, post pics.

After 3 good sharpenings - the serrations with probably blend into the edge anyway.
 
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Probably the easiest serrated edge to maintain. The guys that designed these made sure it was field serviceable and multifunctional. Esee serrations are decent.
 
luethge said:
Esee serrations are probably the most “bushcraft” friendly out there. I’ve had multiple serrated Esee’s - they sharpen on a stone because they are relatively flat, no points to dull and snag. I think you’ll be fine with the serrated Esee 6 - they do help tear through fibrous materials efficiently. You can make some interesting feather sticks as well. The main drawback might be losing some ability to detail carve

* Most importantly though - I’m not an expert on anything.

Get the 6, use it like you hate it, post pics.

After 3 good sharpenings - the serrations with probably blend into the edge anyway.
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I have rods for serrations, but I don't doubt that few good sharpenings on a flat stone would just remove serrations completely.

ESEE is the brand you buy to beat the shit out of and not worry about it breaking, because even if it does - the warranty has got you covered.
 
One of my first Esse's was the Part Serrated 6.
It's early ,serial number 0028.
Generally not a fan of serrations tho , but these are the easiest to sharpen.
 
Used to have a wide range of plain and serrated blades. Being an outdoors guy or doing various types of work. In my personal experience they're unnecessary. P/E does just fine for cutting rope or fabric material. I don't see how one could cut so much where it would actually make a difference between the two naturally. Also I have broken blades with serrations/gimping. They tend to make weak spots depending on how hard you're going to use it. Esee-6 was meant to be hard use. That being said I got rid of every single serrated blade I ever owned.. And when you spend a week to a month + out in the field it's 100x easier to pull out a dc4 and go.
 
AMR11 said:
Used to have a wide range of plain and serrated blades. Being an outdoors guy or doing various types of work. In my personal experience they're unnecessary. P/E does just fine for cutting rope or fabric material. I don't see how one could cut so much where it would actually make a difference between the two naturally. Also I have broken blades with serrations/gimping. They tend to make weak spots depending on how hard you're going to use it. Esee-6 was meant to be hard use. That being said I got rid of every single serrated blade I ever owned.. And when you spend a week to a month + out in the field it's 100x easier to pull out a dc4 and go.
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These serrations are very radiused, so I doubt they'll be really weak spots... besides - there's that warranty.
 
In a larger fixed blade, serrations aren't such a bad feature at all as the whittling portion of the blade will likely be on another (smaller) knife. For me, in my experience, my >6" blades get most of their use not on the couple inches closest to the choil; putting serrations there seems like a benefit more than a detriment.
 
To answer the thread's question, combo edges or partial serrations in general are just not liked by a big portion of the knife community for one reason or another. I think that because a lot of people have issues with them, the model isn't popular. One of the main reasons you will hear a lot, is that the serrations are hard to sharpen. Serrations aren't hard to sharpen, but just require a rod type of sharpening device to sharpen. If you are good at free hand sharpening, you can buy rods for the Spyderco Sharpmaker and sharpen them without the Sharpmaker system. I do like the Sharpmaker though, so I just use that when sharpening serrations. Usually when you hear "it's hard to sharpen serrations" it really means that they don't have the means to do so, or are not familiar with sharpening serrations.
 
LostCause said:
These serrations are very radiused, so I doubt they'll be really weak spots... besides - there's that warranty.
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Yes they are very mild and esee will most likely not break, 1095 with a good heat treat. Again designed for hard use. Just my reasons why I don't choose serrations.. whenever I'm cutting lace, twine or plastic straps my plain edges does just fine. Typically when most people choose an esee6 they plan on chopping limbs, brush "batoning" lol then it's just as dull as the rest of the blade. My 6 works great for all outdoor tasks, carving, cutting like a laser through 550, bankline ect.. I just don't see anyone using a 6 for work or cutting 80yrds worth of 3" rope where serrations out shine. Maybe I'm wrong, idk. For me it doesn't make sense for how I use a blade. Just use what's right for you.
 
At least for me, it's a compromise that kind of delivers the worst of both worlds. There is definitely situations where having serrations is the best tool for the job, but 99% of the time I would choose to use a plain edge. With partial serrations, you lose a lot of the useful working edge both ways. I would rather just have another fully serrated knife for the odd job that needed it, and keep the plain edge for the vast majority of use where I'm glad I don't have partial serrations.
 
Everyone should happily buy whatever they like or want to use or feel is the best for them. But just to clarify a point, one of the things most misunderstood about serrations is whenever you hear people say things to the effect of "My sharp plain edge can cut rope or this or that just as effectively." That's not the point.

The point is when your plain edge goes dull, the serrations will out cut it a thousand to one. It's actually a greater ratio than that because a truly dull plain edge can cut almost nothing. So in that situation, even if it's ripping and tearing, the serrations out cut it at an almost infinite ratio. And that is why they're present on a survival knife.

When the chips are down and you need to cut something and your plain edge is dull, you have something that will cut, even if roughly.

This can be proven quite easily if someone wants to have a contest cutting abrasive materials.

But again, buy whatever you like, no one owes anyone else an explanation for their preferences.

Sam⚔️
 
Sam Wilson said:
Everyone should happily buy whatever they like or want to use or feel is the best for them. But just to clarify a point, one of the things most misunderstood about serrations is whenever you hear people say things to the effect of "My sharp plain edge can cut rope or this or that just as effectively." That's not the point.

The point is when your plain edge goes dull, the serrations will out cut it a thousand to one. It's actually a greater ratio than that because a truly dull plain edge can cut almost nothing. So in that situation, even if it's ripping and tearing, the serrations out cut it at an almost infinite ratio. And that is why they're present on a survival knife.

When the chips are down and you need to cut something and your plain edge is dull, you have something that will cut, even if roughly.

This can be proven quite easily if someone wants to have a contest cutting abrasive materials.

But again, buy whatever you like, no one owes anyone else an explanation for their preferences.

Sam⚔️
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I totally agree, buy what you want. Your use will vary from everyone else, as will your preferences.

I don't think anyone would argue with the fact that serrations will out cut a plain edge in utility, but it's the difference between cutting and tearing. Most of the time I prefer a somewhat more controlled cut rather than just shearing/tearing. There are obvious exceptions though like cutting through heavy plastic as one example.

In the hypothetical survival situation I think I would manage only having a plain edge; I will have something or could find something to sharpen with, and most of the time in real situations I will never get to the stage of having a super dull knife in the first place.

In the end though, this is more a debate on serrations vs plain edge. The thread is about why the partially serrated model is not popular, and that is a different debate. If given the choice, I would choose a plain edge over partially serrated any day. I totally understand others going the other way though. It's apples and oranges and no matter what, you are making compromises where one choice has advantages and disadvantages over the other.
 
Mans question was why is plain edge esee6 more popular than the serrated version. Mainly because most will use if for a camp & trail knife & ease of maintenance. Even though it's marketing is a "survival knife". What if survival situations in reality is highly unlikely. Less than 1 percent chance considering the millions every year that go to national parks each year by statistics. So I'd have to respectfully disagree. Most videos out there of ppl using it talk about being able to pick up a flat river stone if they needed to maintain a working edge, may not be razor but usable. I'd like to see a comparison video of that. Full serrated blade versus plain edge blade used for Bushcraft then sharpened by a river stone and see which comes out sharper.
 
To me, sharpening serrations is not an issue.

Also, I'd just carry the sharpening rod when going somewhere and problem solved.
 
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DC4

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Gatco ( or Lansky )

These will keep your serrated or plain edge plenty sharp in the field, or at work or wherever.. especially 1095. Pair them with a leather belt to strop and you are good to go.
 
AMR11 said:
Mans question was why is plain edge esee6 more popular than the serrated version. Mainly because most will use if for a camp & trail knife & ease of maintenance. Even though it's marketing is a "survival knife". What if survival situations in reality is highly unlikely. Less than 1 percent chance considering the millions every year that go to national parks each year by statistics. So I'd have to respectfully disagree. Most videos out there of ppl using it talk about being able to pick up a flat river stone if they needed to maintain a working edge, may not be razor but usable. I'd like to see a comparison video of that. Full serrated blade versus plain edge blade used for Bushcraft then sharpened by a river stone and see which comes out sharper.
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For serrations you need to find flat river rod stone.
 
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